Hand Held Baseball or Softball Batting Tee

ABSTRACT

A batting tee or batting training device comprising of a handle adapted so that is can be held by a person other than the batter, a ball-holding section which includes a ball-holding apparatus, sleeve, or cone to hold the baseball or softball, and a shaft section between the handle and the ball-holding section, sleeve, or cone.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a batting tee and, more particularly,to a hand held batting tee where the position can be easily changed andball movement can also be easily achieved.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

In baseball and softball, one of the most difficult skills to master isthat of batting. The batter must be able to coordinate the swing of abat with the location of a ball so that good contact with the ball canbe made while swinging the bat. Once this is mastered, the hitter mustalso learn to make good contact with the ball at the various positionsat which it may cross home plate. This can include pitches that areinside, outside, high, low, or a combination of these variables.

To develop these skills, players have used a stationary baseball orsoftball tee for supporting a ball at a selected height above thehitting area. With the ball positioned, the batter can practice swingingat that location to assist in the process of coordinating the batter'shand-eye coordination.

A typical batting tee comprises of a planar base having the appearanceof a baseball home plate, with an elongated, length-adjustable member.One member being rigidly connected to the base, typically the center,and the other end of the member being adapted to receive a ball forsupporting the ball at a variable height above the base.

Variations of the typical batting tee now include batting tees thatcomprise of a planar base with multiple holes in specific locations. Theelongated, length-adjustable member can be moved between the multipleholes to change the location of the hitting area relative to thebaseball home plate shaped planar base. The purpose of the multipleholes is to give the batter the ability to practice their hand-eyecoordination for different locations of the ball on the baseball homeplate. While such batting tees are widely used, there are a number ofproblems that exists therewith.

First, the batting tee is only capable of supporting a ball at one fixedposition at a time. If a batter wants to practice hitting the ball invarious locations with each swing, the batter must change the locationof the elongated, length-adjustable member after each swing. This is avery time-consuming and labor-intensive process.

Second, the batting tee with multiple holes is still limited to thenumber of locations in which the ball can be positioned for the batter.For example, a batting tee with five holes allows the batter to practicehitting in five locations, but there are infinitely more possiblelocations that cannot be practiced.

Third, the batting tee is also a heavy and bulky item. Existing battingtees are either not readily disassembled, or they cannot be disassembledat all. This makes the batting tee difficult to package, ship, andstore. Furthermore, a batter cannot easily take the tee with himwherever they go for use in practicing batting.

Another training device for batting consists of a handle and shaft witha permanently attached ball on the end of the shaft. This trainingdevice is commonly referred to as a “ball on a stick.” A coach or secondparticipant, while holding the handle, can position the permanentlyattached ball for the batter. The coach or second participant can changethe location of the ball for each swing, giving the batter the abilityto practice hitting various locations. While this training device iswidely used, there are a number of problems that exist therewith.

First, the “ball on a stick” utilizes a permanently attached ball. Thismeans that when the batter hits the ball, the batter is not able to seethe speed and direction in which the ball travels once hit. Instead, theball remains attached to the shaft.

Second, because the ball is permanently attached to the shaft, the coachor person holding the handle is forced to hold the handle and absorb theshock and impact when the batter hits the ball. Throughout the durationof batting, the coach or person holding the handle begins to feel painin their shoulder, elbow, and wrist as a result of having to absorb theimpact of each hit.

Third, the permanently attached ball is often constructed of a materialthat is harder or denser than a regular baseball or softball. As aresult, use of the “ball on a stick” can cause damage to or break abatter's bat.

Fourth, the permanently attached ball suffers from wear and tear whenused, and eventually will break from the repeated impact of the batter'sbat. Once the permanently attached ball breaks, the training device canno longer be used.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to the present invention, there is provided a batting tee andbatting training device that solves these problems in a manner unknownheretofore. The present batting tee and batting training device iscapable of supporting a ball at an infinite number of differenthorizontal and vertical positions relative to a baseball home plate. Inthis manner, a batter can practice hitting a variety of different pitchlocations to better simulate an actual game.

Further, since the present invention is not attached to a base, but isinstead held by another coach or person, the present batting tee andbatting training device can be moved while the batter swings to helpimprove the batter's hand-eye coordination. This allows the batter topractice hitting a ball that is in motion.

Further, the present invention can utilize regular baseballs orsoftballs, soft practice balls, wiffle-type balls, foam type balls andany other type ball as opposed to using a permanently attached baseballor softball. This allows the batter to see the speed and direction ofthe ball once the batter hits it. This also prevents the coach or otherperson holding the batting tee from having to absorb the impact of thebatter's hit, since the force of the impact is instead transferred tothe ball that is not permanently attached to the shaft.

Further, the present invention is lighter and more portable, allowingthe batter to take the present batting tee or batting training devicewith him wherever he goes. The present invention can also be stored in asmall space.

Briefly, the present batting tee or batting training device comprises ahandle adapted so that is can be held by a person other than the batter,a ball-holding section, sleeve, or cone to hold the baseball orsoftball, and a shaft section between the handle and the ball-holdingsection, sleeve, or cone.

OBJECT OF THE INVENTION

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a strongand stable batting tee, which is simple in construction and easilytransported and stored.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a batting teeor batting training device capable or supporting a baseball or softballat any possible position to allow the batter to practice all of thepossible locations the batter may need to be able to hit the ball in.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide a batting teeor batting training device in which the position of the supported ballmay be readily changed.

If is a further object of the present invention to provide a batting teeor batting training device in which the supported ball may be placed inmotion so the batter can practice hitting a moving ball.

Still other objects, features, and attendant advantages of the presentinvention will become apparent to those skilled in the art from areading of the following detailed description of the preferredembodiment constructed in accordance therewith, taken in conjunctionwith the accompanying drawings wherein like numerals designate like orcorresponding parts in the several figures and wherein:

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a batting tee or batting training deviceconstructed in accordance with the teaching of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the batting tee or battingtraining device of FIG. 1;

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Referring now to the drawings, there is shown a batting tee or battingtraining device, generally designated 10, constructed in accordance withthe teachings of the present invention. The tee 10 includes a handle 11,a shaft section 12, and a ball-holding section, sleeve, or cone 13.

The shaft section 12 includes a curved section 14 in the present drawingto better position the ball-holding section 13 for the batter. It ispossible, however, that the shaft section 12 could be constructedutilizing many different shapes, curves, and designs and still remain inaccordance with the teaching of the present invention. The shaft section12 may be constructed of any durable material that can withstand theimpact of a baseball or softball bat.

The handle section 11 in the present drawing includes a cushioned grip15 and a wrist strap 16 to provide additional comfort and protection forthe coach or other person holding the batting tee or training device 10.It is possible that a batting tee or batting training device could beconstructed in accordance with the teaching of the present inventionwithout the use of a cushioned grip 15 or wrist strap 16. The presentdrawing suggest one possible representation of a handle section 11, butthe present invention should not be limited to the design or shape ofthe handle section 11 in the present drawing. One such variation couldinclude, but is not limited to, the use of an ergonomic handle.

The ball-holding section, sleeve, or cone 13 in the present drawingincludes a shaft collar 17, locking pin 18, and rubber cone 19. Thebaseball or softball would be placed on top of the rubber cone 19 toallow the batter to hit the ball. The use of the shaft collar 17 andlocking pin 18 permits the use of interchangeable rubber cones 19designed specifically for us with a softball or baseball. The batterwould be able to change the rubber cone 19 by removing the locking pin18 from the shaft collar 17, removing the current rubber cone 19, andthen inserting a new rubber cone 19 into the shaft collar 17 andinserting the locking pin 18.

The design may still remain in accordance with the teaching of thepresent invention if a sleeve or other ball-holding apparatus isutilized instead of the cone 19. It is also possible for the presentinvention to include a different attachment method than the use of ashaft collar 17 and locking pin 18. The present invention may also beconstructed without the use of a shaft collar 17, locking pin 18, orother attachment method, and instead include a permanently attached cone19, sleeve, or ball-holding apparatus.

The cone 19, sleeve, or ball-holding apparatus may be constructed ofrubber, pvc, or any other material, whether presently known or unknown,that would be sufficiently durable to sustain repeated impacts from abatter's softball or baseball bat.

It can therefore be seen that according to the present invention, thereis provided a novel batting tee or batting training device 10 thatsolves the problems encountered heretofore.

While the invention has been described with respect to a preferredphysical embodiment constructed in accordance therewith, it will beapparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications andimprovements may be made without departing from the scope and spirit ofthe invention. Accordingly, it is to be understood that the invention isnot to be limited by the specific illustrative embodiment, but only bythe scope of the appended claims.

1. A batting tee for holding a baseball or softball comprising of: Ahandle section adapted so a person other than the batter can hold it; aball-holding section which includes a ball holding apparatus, sleeve, orcone; a shaft section that connects the handle and the ball-holdingsection, sleeve, or cone.